Dagon

Brother to Lord Ptharos and patron of fire, Dagon is the ultimate adversary, not only to the gods, but to the mortal world as well. His dictates demand nothing less than the total destruction of Creation. His worshipers believe Creation to be inherently flawed, rife with suffering and pain inflicted on mortals by the Triad itself. Their purpose is to destroy what the Triad created so that Dagon can recreate everything in his perfect image.

Despite his destructive and rebellious dogma, priests of Dagon are surprisingly pervasive. Few cultures have gone more than a decade without discovering a secret cabal of his worshipers quietly working in their midst to bring chaos and destruction to the world. Of Dagon's various children and creations, only Pelactere, his queen, has ever displayed any true loyalty as an ally, despite Dagon's periodic dalliances with Cardena and Alecto.

It is notable that, in the Aebasan Orthodoxy, Dagon is depicted as more of a trickster and punisher of the damned than the central adversary of the faith. Though he is still depicted as the King of the Damned, he is seen as much less an evil than that represented by Phlegethon, god of tyranny.

Dagon

God of Fire

Descriptive Info

Gender: Male

Avatar: Alohar the Unholy, Krigon Firemane, the Adversary, amongst others

Consort(s): Dagon has taken Pelactere, goddess of anger and Queen of the Damned, as his only consort, though he has had many dalliances with various mortals

Allies: Though his offspring can barely be called allies, they are more likely to come to his aid than they are to aid each other. Of particular note are Alecto, goddess of pain, and Cardena, goddess of lust, who fulfills Dagon's masochistic and sexual desires. Needless to say, the two are despised by Pelactere and the three often bicker, much to Dagon's alternating pleasure and chagrin.

Foes: The Ptharosian deities are all deadly enemies of Dagon and his brood. Kratos, god of war, despises his grandfather, and would see him unseated. The few attempts Kratos has made to ally with Ptharosian deities has met with dismal failure. Betshaba, goddess of water, however is Dagon's most dire enemy, mostly due to her rape by Dagon's hand, which was prevented from coming to completion by Vortumnus, god of chivalry.

Spiritual Info

Rank: Greatest

Nature: Anarchistic

Ethos: Baneful

Major Influence: Fire

Minor Influence(s): Deserts, desert-beasts, injustice, opposition, rebellion, fratricide, evil

Spheres: Chaos, Evil, Fire, Darkness, Rage*, Trickery

Depictions

Dagon is usually depicted as a thick, muscular man with flaming red flesh and bestial yellow eyes which glow with a baleful fire. His hair is black and straight, and he has either two small horns protruding from his forehead or two spiraling black horns which grow from the sides of his head. His face is always wrinkled in an expression of pure rage. He has cloven hooves, much like a goat, which are said to singe the ground wherever he steps. Typical Ptharosian depictions show him wearing only a loincloth. Dagon's own followers usually depict him either completely nude with a pronounced phallus or clad in the Golden Mail of Hell. Regardless of his clothing, he always wears the Broken Crown, a golden crown which was snapped during Dagon's first war with Lord Ptharos.

Dagon's primary weapon is the Trident of Rage, a burning, blackened weapon which is said to pierce a person's soul, and can bring bleak despair to even the gods themselves. He is also known to carry the Damned Dirk, as well as the Bow of Flame, though he typically relies on his trident and its horrible powers. When Dagon chooses to wear armor, he wears the Golden Mail of Hell, which protects him from any blow which is initiated by one not of pure heart. The armor was forged by Mephistopheles, one of his demon lieutenants, and is considered by Dagonians to be the finest armor ever crafted.

Symbols

The primary symbol of Dagon is an inverted red or orange triangle, sometimes with a stylized pitchfork within. Poisonous plants are always significant, though Hemlock is by far the most important to Dagonian ceremonies. Any priest who takes a drink laced with Hemlock and survives without magical assistance receives a 2 DR bonus to his Priestcraft castings until the next new moon. Lava is significant, where it can be found, but obsidian is by far the most important stone to the worshiper of Dagon, and it can often be found in magic items dedicated to Dagon. Gold is also significant to Dagon, but only as a symbol of greed.

Dwelling Place

The Fortress of Tophet, at the center of Hell

Servants

Dagon is sometimes attended by Ashtoreth, Prefect of Hell and chief amongst his demons, as well as Ashtoreth's lieutenants, Chemosh, Lilith, Asmodeus, and Mephistopheles. Dagon is attended by a host of other demons, most of which are the souls of those who had dedicated themselves to Dagon or his servants in life.

Doctrine

No information available on the doctrine of Dagon

Mission

No information available on the mission of Dagon

Geography

No geographic information available on Dagon

History of the Church

No historic information available on Dagon

Organization

No information available on the Organization of the Church of Dagon

Priesthood

The priesthood of Dagon tends to be small, composed mostly of isolated covens and hidden churches. Because of the opposition of the followers of Lord Ptharos, the priesthood of Dagon must necessarily remain hidden, except in the few regions where Dagon is accorded some level of respect.

The organization of the church is similar to that of the Ptharosian deities, though there are few organized orders of monks. The high priest for Dagon is referred to as the Chosen. In a highly complex ceremony, Dagon infuses the Chosen with a small amount of his own, Entital energy. This allows Dagon to directly speak through the Chosen, when he elects to do so. The Chosen rules the hierarchy of the church with an iron fist, as Dagon rarely takes any particular effort to save his high priest from any attempts at assassination or treachery. Indeed, those who succeed in the assassination of the Chosen are often accorded high respect by his comrades. Should someone from outside the Church (even worshipers of other Dagonian deities) attempt such an assassination, however, Dagon invariably takes notice, sending several demons to assist in his protection. The Chosen is always male, and must always be one who has committed the most vile acts possible by mortals. The destruction and desecration of a temple to Lord Ptharos by flame is almost always a requirement.

Minor priests and attendants of the Chosen, as well as the Antisacerdos of a specific temple, must perform a sacrifice at least once a month. At least once a year, this sacrifice must be of an adult virgin female. If this sacrifice fails (because of the impropriety of the female or some other reason), the displeasure of Dagon is made known though signs, and the Antisacerdos must then stand in as sacrifice. Needless to say, the victim is always carefully researched before such a sacrifice takes place.

Those Antisacerdos who are fortunate enough to have a brother who is a worshiper of one of the Ptharosian deities, and are able to successfully sacrifice this brother to Dagon, are permitted to become members of the Order of the Flaming Heart. These individuals are the protectors of the worship of Dagon, and are the closest thing Dagon has to a knightly order. These individuals are usually blessed by Dagon with special powers or abilities that make them much more able to enact Dagon's vile desires. Those of the Order are always transformed into demons upon their physical deaths, so these religious fanatics do not fear their own demise, knowing full well that they will be rewarded upon death.

Garments

Priests of Dagon wear robes of red and orange, and often paint their faces black or grey with ash. During times of war, they wear intricate baroque armor that is typically chased in gold and decorated with as much obsidian as possible. They also must carry their sacrificial dagger at all times, as none other are permitted to touch the hilt what they consider a very personal item.

Religious Practices

The laity of Dagon are few, and the organization of the church does not lend itself to lay administrators and workers. Those who do work for the church are often either powerful beings who do evil in the hope of being transformed into a demon upon death, or weak-minded individuals who obey Dagon because they have been tricked into obeying a charismatic cult leader. Even though they are few in numbers, the worshipers of Dagon are everywhere, penetrating every level of society, though not controlling it.

Calendar

Dagon has no specific holy days, though worship takes place only once a month, on the night of the full moon. Other ceremonies take place whenever the Antisacerdos or Chosen chooses.

Customs

Dagonian worshipers always keep a fire burning in their homes, even if it a small candle. They are also required to keep a fire burning during Dagon's hour, that time between midnight and one in the morning. It is said that Dagon has the power to appear in the mortal world only during this time, and only through a burning flame. During religious ceremonies, fire-walking is common, as is the inflicting of pain with hot irons or direct application of fire. Those who desire special dispensation or the favor of Dagon must immolate some living creature in flame. The more intelligent, useful and massive the creature, the higher the chance that Dagon's favor will be attained. Restrictions/Taboos: The worshipers of Dagon are prohibited from ever willingly entering a temple or consecrated area dedicated to a Ptharosian deity, unless it is for the purposes of desecration of the temple or area. Otherwise, there are few restrictions or taboos. Too many such restrictions would make it too easy for those who despise the Dark Lord to destroy his followers. Priests may not wear clothing which is dyed green, blue or brown (though unpainted materials that are these colors, such as leather boots, are permitted).

Taboos

None